Doug Cameron (NSW, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister for Climate Change and Water, Senator Wong. Can the minister outline to the Senate the challenges Australia faces on climate change and what steps the government is taking to meet those challenges?

Opposition Senators:

Opposition senators interjecting—

John Hogg (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order! I will call Senator Wong when there is silence.

Penny Wong (SA, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Climate Change and Water) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Thank you, Mr President. It is interesting to notice the different range of interjections on the other side when the words ‘climate change’ are uttered in this chamber, evincing yet again the complete division on that side, certainly between Senators Boswell and Minchin and others who claim to care about the issue of climate change and want to do something about it. What we know is that carbon pollution and other greenhouse gases are causing the world’s climate change and we are experiencing more extreme weather, higher temperatures, more droughts and rising sea levels. We also know that, with one of the hottest and driest continents on earth, this nation’s environment and our economy will be one of the hardest and fastest hit by climate change if we do not act now.

At the last election Australians made it clear that they wanted action on climate change; that they, unlike too many in the Howard government, understood the challenge of climate change and wanted a government to act. We are getting on with the job of tackling climate change in a number of ways. As you will recall, Mr President, our first official act was to ratify the Kyoto protocol. We are now engaged in negotiations for a global agreement. We are creating a massive expansion in low-pollution jobs and renewable energy, firstly, with our 20 per cent renewable energy target, which will increase the uptake of renewable energy in this country by four times—a massive investment in renewable energy in Australia. Through the Nation Building and Jobs Plan, which was announced by the Prime Minister, we have made the largest investment in energy efficiency in the nation’s history. Later today I will be releasing the exposure draft legislation for the Carbon Pollution Reduction Scheme. We will be releasing that exposure draft, as we said we would; the outworking of the decisions in the white paper (Time expired)

Doug Cameron (NSW, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr President, I ask a supplementary question. Can the minister advise the Senate on any international developments on climate change which may have implications for Australia?

Ron Boswell (Queensland, National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

What about the workers?

Penny Wong (SA, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Climate Change and Water) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I will take Senator Boswell’s interjection. It appears he is lecturing the Labor Party about the workers. It is a pity he did not remember that when he voted for Work Choices in this chamber. The fact is this is about the jobs of the future, Senator Boswell, as well as protecting today’s jobs. Unlike you, we will not shy away from the task of building tomorrow’s jobs whilst we protect the jobs of today. In relation to the question, there have been some welcome developments in recent times. I particularly welcome the comments of both President Obama and his US climate envoy, Mr Todd Stern, in recent weeks which did a number of things: first, reinforcing the US administration’s commitment to a strong international agreement at Copenhagen and also to a broadbased cap and trade emissions trading program. We are pleased that the new administration is showing leadership on this issue. We have always said since we have come to government that critical to any international agreement will be the United States as well as China. (Time expired)

Doug Cameron (NSW, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr President, I ask a further supplementary question. Can the minister indicate to the Senate what potential threats there are to Australia taking responsible action on climate change?

Penny Wong (SA, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Climate Change and Water) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

There is a very simple answer to that, through you, Mr President, and that is: those opposite—those opposite who made sure for over a decade they did nothing on this issue, dominated by—

John Hogg (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Wong, address your comments to the chair; do not take the interjections from the other side. Those on the other side: interjections are disorderly.

Penny Wong (SA, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Climate Change and Water) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

a government on that side which denied the existence of climate change for years, locking in continued growth in Australia’s carbon pollution, which it has left for this government to put in place policies to turn around. What is interesting is to look at the range of things that those opposite have said about when they would announce their position. First they said they would announce their targets after Professor Garnaut’s report. Well, that was September last year. Then they said it would be after the Treasury modelling: October last year. Then they said it would be after the white paper: December last year. Then they said after their own Pearce review, which occurred last month. When will you actually announce a position? You do not have one. (Time expired)

Richard Colbeck (Tasmania, Liberal Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister for Climate Change and Water, Senator Wong. Was the minister consulted about the government’s decision both to set up and then to scrap the inquiry into its emissions trading scheme?

Penny Wong (SA, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Climate Change and Water) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

It is interesting that when they confront the issue of climate change, this challenge which requires a whole-of-economy reform, those opposite want to come back to process politics and playing games with this issue, just like they did for years in government. As the Treasurer has said, it was quite clear from the way in which those opposite were playing politics on the issue of the terms of reference of that inquiry that it would not be helpful for that inquiry to be continued. As I have also said, we will be moving in the Senate that this legislation, the draft legislation that I will be releasing shortly, be referred to the Senate Standing Committee on Economics for consideration. We think it is important—

Ian Macdonald (Queensland, Liberal Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Northern Australia) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr President, I raise a point of order. Had Senator Colbeck wanted to know this information he would have asked a question about it. His question was very deliberate: was the minister consulted in the setting up and then the disbanding of the inquiry? That is all we want to know and we would appreciate it if the minister could answer the question asked of her.

Joe Ludwig (Queensland, Australian Labor Party, Manager of Government Business in the Senate) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr President, on the point of order: what we have now is simply a point of order taken on the basis that a Liberal senator on the other side thinks that Senator Wong is not answering the question. I ask those on the other side to raise their point of order with what that point of order in fact is because that is not easily discernible from the diatribe that comes from the other side. If you are going to raise a point of order it is important that you state what the point of order is so that we on this side can address it appropriately. I understand it could mean a point of relevance. If that is the issue, I will address that: Senator Wong is being relevant to the question, is being on point and is dealing with a very serious matter.

John Hogg (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Wong, you have one minute and three seconds to address the question that has been asked.

Penny Wong (SA, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Climate Change and Water) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

In relation to the inquiry, the Treasurer has made clear the government’s position. He wrote to the parliamentary committee and proposed an inquiry. As a result of the way in which the inquiry had been misunderstood, including by those opposite who used the opportunity to open up the debate again as to whether or not we should have an emissions trading scheme, the Treasurer then asked that the committee reconsider that reference. Obviously, the committee’s decisions are a matter for the committee and the Treasurer has outlined the position from the government’s perspective.

Richard Colbeck (Tasmania, Liberal Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr President, I ask a supplementary question. Senator Wong obviously did not understand whether she was consulted or not or whether the chair of the committee was consulted or not. He certainly had a different interpretation from his Treasurer. Will the minister support a Senate inquiry into the government’s emissions trading scheme which contains precisely the same terms of reference as the inquiry announced by the Treasurer on 12 February this year and instruct government agencies to cooperate with the inquiry?

Penny Wong (SA, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Climate Change and Water) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

We await the opposition’s agreement with the Greens on the terms of reference for the inquiry. I have not seen it as yet—I have not seen the agreement. I do find it interesting that we have senators Boswell and Joyce saying they will not support an emissions trading scheme and, meanwhile, the Liberal Party and the coalition are coming to an agreement with Senator Milne about terms of reference. It will be a very interesting terms of reference, may I say. We will certainly consider the terms of reference that the Liberal Party and the Greens put up. I would like to know, of course, whether it is a joint position of the coalition or only the Liberal Party.

Richard Colbeck (Tasmania, Liberal Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr President, I ask a further supplementary question. I refer the minister to the Prime Minister’s pre-election promise to introduce an emissions trading scheme by 2010 without disadvantaging our export and import competing industries. Does the minister deny that the government scrapped its proposed inquiry because it now realises its ETS policy will cost jobs and kill investment?

Penny Wong (SA, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Climate Change and Water) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The answer to that question is no. The government is absolutely clear that this is the responsible thing to do for both the challenge of climate change and in order to create the jobs of the future. Unlike those opposite we are not going to take a position where we continue to duck the issue of climate change, as occurred over the last 10 years. There may be those on the other side—and they are gradually exerting more influence—who simply do not want action on climate change and for whom this has become one of the ways in which Mr Turnbull is undermined, but the reality is that we on this side of the chamber understand it is the responsible thing to do to both support today’s jobs and build the jobs of tomorrow.